Project: Tow-Rat (Lil' Blue)

[lower50's]

Well you won't have a range problem that's for sure.

[6DoF]

new power steering pump n bracket to delete the factory vacuum pump gives me all kinds of room for motor mounts! and one less oil leak.

drew up the shock mounts. decided to use RS9000XL shocks for the adjustability, so i hit up service and got a PDF with every shock they make listed with lengths and eye's. took a bit to go thru, but found some.

also sandblasted a factory bezel before i made a backing to mount gauges. the plate is actually CORTEN and will most likely get a clearcoat to keep that look. at this point i'm leaning towards one gps Speedhut speedo centered low, and 2 Banks iDash datalogging gauges above. can display anything and everything i'd ever want, plus datalog and tune the 12v when i start playing with it. i probably won't order those until i get the body back on the chassis for good though.

[6DoF]

so i'll be really disappointed if i never get the chance to throw way too many PSI's at this motor. with that in mind, and my current record of blowing out drive shafts, i wanted to make sure i gave this every chance to live. enter the 1410 series u-joints, ram used them factory on some HD applications and is what the truck-pull guys will upgrade to as well.

i need a 2pc drive shaft just for length alone, and to get out from under the cab easier. i also wanted a CV rear shaft with the CV flange fixed right at the truck arm pivot. this would give me the "perfect" shaft angle thru the entire range of travel. this all meant that i needed a fixed carrier bearing at a different angle than the forward shaft, so really you could maybe call this a 3pc drive shaft. the carrier bearing or mid shaft, will be at the same 6.5deg as the transmission and have a standard shaft between the trans to bearing. the bearing will be fixed to the chassis and give me the fixed CV flange output to the axle.

so the offroad rock racing guys also use 1410, and Branik Motorsports sells this ultimate carrier bearing. however they only sell it with a standard yoke on both ends. Dodge used a 1410 CV in the front of some 4x4 trucks, and dimensionally i figured it could be used in the assembly. i bought a used yoke, mailed it to Branik, and they machined it to work! 32spline chromoly shaft, shimmed bearing pre-load, and ready to weld in. can't weld it with the bearings in there, so once it's fit i'll pack it with grease and install the seals.

[6DoF]

small weekend update ... i ended up sleeping more than anticipated cuz my plate order didn't show up. stupid USPS. i guess i also worked on the street jeep some, wired up new Hi/Low heated seat switches Rain this weekend washed the roads clean so i can start driving it to work again!

got the front shock mounts all dialed in. also got the front clip body mounts all figured and ready, but didn't finish. maybe i'll do that tonight.

if anyone is interested, the mounts are made from old ford truck bolt-on mounts that i cut up. i've used them a lot on jeeps before, they are a great starting point.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[lower50's]

Ya I think you will have a hard time braking that, but I don't think your poor little 1/4 drive impact with that huge socket on it will have enough torque to tighten the nut properly

[6DoF]

Originally Posted by lower50's

Ya I think you will have a hard time braking that, but I don't think your poor little 1/4 drive impact with that huge socket on it will have enough torque to tighten the nut properly

i was an engineer with DeWALT Cordless for 7 years before coming back to Pittsburgh, i have a few other toys i could use

[6DoF]

oooohhhhh yeah! she officially holds her own face finally!

you might also notice that i chopped out the rad mount and welded it back in. it used to stand proud of the support, but i made it flush to gain another 1/2" of clearance. was going to go further, but this was easier and still helped.

[youngrodder]

Very nice....we need to see a picture with the front sheet metal and laid out.......

Marc

[lower50's]

[6DoF]

yes sir!

so page 2 post 62 is pretty close picture ... but i have to wait til the engine is mounted to move it off the current blocks. my plate should have been in on friday, but USPS sucks pretty back and no estimated arrival now.

[6DoF]

so that's not going ANYwhere. a little alignment, a little more strap rubber, a few hoses, n fill it.

[6DoF]

"Make the noise!"

[6DoF]

she now holds the 12v! I'm super happy with the fit/function of these mounts, they aren't going anywhere. but they just lack something, they don't have the same style as other bits on the truck. they are missing with my eye, but unless i come up with something super easy, they aren't getting changed. front of the crank sits 1/2" passenger, and the trans output is 1/4" passenger to help gain clearance for the starter (and a throttle pedal)

[youngrodder]

Nice job on the motor mounts. They should work. They look very robust.

Marc

[GreasyLikeaBurger]

Originally Posted by 6DoF

"Make the noise!"

Clearly you havent made enough brackets to appease the digital level. Or you probably forgot to put the kettle on. BadObsessionMotorsports

[6DoF]

[6DoF]

YYYEEEEAAAAAAAHHHHHSSSSSSSSS!!

I might have done some things out of order n had to re-do em ... But she's officially hanging. The crossmember should be good for the chassis, was easy in n out, and won't let that trans go anywhere.

I love the flat belly pics, b/c racecar

[lower50's]

Nice job!! Will the rubber in the motor mounts give enough for the shake of the diesel? Love your tube work.

[youngrodder]

Love your fab work. The braces and motor mounts look great.

Marc

[6DoF]

Originally Posted by lower50's

Nice job!! Will the rubber in the motor mounts give enough for the shake of the diesel? Love your tube work.

thanks! i do love my bender

so on the bushings ... i guess we'll find out! i used similar poly bushings for engine mounts on the GM 6.0L in my other Jeep, and they're great. a buddy who has a 12V in a square body used windshield installation urethane to inject his factory Ram motor mounts to fill all the voids. not only does the built engine move a lot less when romping on it, but i actually thought the vibration harshness in the cab was better. it was really different from the stock Ram i drove. i don't know what their original build metrics were for NHV, but i've never thought any factory decisions were the right compromise for me.

side note: if you try and shake the motor, because of the preload in the bushings with the weight, there is NO give in the bushings and the whole chassis moves. if you try and wiggle the trans tail shaft back n forth without the crossmember, the engine mounts only let you muscle it maybe 1/4" total motion. she's locked in

[6DoF]

Originally Posted by youngrodder

Love your fab work. The braces and motor mounts look great.

Marc

Ditto, thanks!

[6DoF]

made some shocking progress this evening

[6DoF]

got the carrier bearing mounted finally now that i knew the angle of the trans output. the sucky part is that i have to knock the bearing races out to fully weld it.

i do have some drive shafts i can start cutting up for temporary bits for the first test drive and sorting everything out.

[6DoF]

one thing i really want this to be is reasonable to drive for long distances on the highway. that's going to require a new rear gear to really get there, but I'm starting with noise and heat. while researching mufflers and killing drone on big exhaust for the 12v, the ONLY thing that everyone agreed on was that these resonator/mufflers are the best thing going. even adding another standard muffler after it for a great note that is actually more quite then factory in the cab. but it looks super screwy

my next issue is getting a 5" exhaust to go anywhere reasonable. i have always planned to run it down outside the frame on the passenger side with a side exit in front of the running board. the running board might now get scrapped for a 2nd muffler, but i'll save that for later. the real issue is going to be getting the exhaust around the frame, tire, shock, and body! if building this frame again, i'd move the 45deg section back by 3" to gain enough space to turn a 90 in plane with the ground and then turn a 90 straight up inside to the turbo. as it stands though, i have 5.5" between the floor and frame. i was thinking maybe i would just run a 4" down to the rocker, but now maybe i can crush a 5" down to a 4" tall oval locally there. we'll see, this will be a project.

[6DoF]

this next bit of fab is going to make a few of you twitch

off road fab'd some drive shafts for test fitting and set-up this weekend. but will also most likely start driving on them too. section out or in whatever length you want, clamp with angle iron on 2 sides to keep the tube straight and weld it back up. jump around a lot and to the opposite side each time to keep from warping it, grind off the top of the weld to minimize extra weight working against the balance, but leave the weld proud for extra material at the joint for strength.

i have actually had very good success doing this with perfect balance at 80mph, and living years under jeeps being beat off road. just not the prettiest, or well accepted solution.

had to make a little clearance on the fwd shaft to the crossmember. held a sharpie on a pc of 1/4" plate and spun the shaft to get about 1/2" clearance. if the chassis twists enough to get that to contact, the solution isn't more clearance but adding a roll cage this shaft is 1410 joints, and will eventually just get a new professionally balanced pc.

the rear shaft helped me set the rear pinion angle and check it thru travel. at full droop i set the pinion 2deg below the shaft to allow for a little motion up under torque loading. at full compression the pinion is only 1.2deg below the pinion, so ride will be somewhere in the middle. axle perches are officially tacked in place, making the axle DONE and ready for final weld/paint. this shaft is a junkyard 1350 cv, eventually i'll get a new 1410 cv unit and have to change the yoke on the axle at the same time. that's probably also a good time to get better gears and limited slip installed.

i'm quickly running out of things to fab and procrastinate doing the floor ...